Refrigerator

ABSTRACT

A refrigerator includes a cabinet, a control unit provided in the cabinet and controlling an operation of the refrigerator, a main door that opens or closes the cabinet and has an opening formed therein, a main hinge that couples the cabinet to the main door and allows the main door to be pivotably mounted, a sub-door formed on a front surface of the refrigerator and opens or closes the opening, a sub-hinge that couples the main door to the sub-door and allows the sub-door to be pivotably mounted, a sub-hinge cover that simultaneously shield a main hinge shaft of the main hinge and a sub-hinge shaft of the sub-hinge, and a wire disposed to extend from an inside of the sub-door, to be connected with the control unit, and to sequentially pass through the sub-hinge shaft and the main hinge shaft along an inside of the sub-hinge cover.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a Continuation Application of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 17/901,248 filed Sep. 1, 2022, which is aContinuation Application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/018,321filed Sep. 11, 2020 (now U.S. Pat. No. 11,464,347), which is aContinuation Application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/881,752filed May 22, 2020 (now U.S. Pat. No. 10,799,039), which is aContinuation Application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/695,611,filed Nov. 26, 2019 (now U.S. Pat. No. 10,694,870), which is aContinuation Application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/963,498filed Apr. 26, 2018 (now U.S. Pat. No. 10,524,586), which claimspriority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 to Korean Application No.10-2017-0053880, filed on Apr. 26, 2017, whose entire disclosures arehereby incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND 1. Field

The present disclosure relates to a refrigerator.

2. Background

In general, a refrigerator refers to a home appliance in which food maybe stored in an internal storage space, which is shielded by a door, ata low temperature To achieve this, the refrigerator is configured toaccommodate the stored food in an optimum state by cooling the internalstorage space using cold air generated through heat exchange with arefrigerant circulating in a refrigeration cycle.

In recent years, refrigerators have become increasingly multi-functionalwith changes of dietary lives and gentrification of products, andrefrigerators having various structures and convenience devices forconvenience of users and for efficient use of internal spaces have beenreleased.

The storage space of the refrigerator may be open/closed by the door.Further, the refrigerator may be classified into various types accordingto arrangement of the storage space and a structure of the doorconfigured to open/close the storage space.

In particular, recently, various electronic parts may be provided in adoor of the refrigerator, and power supply lines and communication linesfor the electronic parts are guided from the door to a main body.Representatively, Korean Unexamined Patent Publication No.10-2004-0049690 discloses the structure of guiding an electric wirethrough a hinge serving as a pivot shaft of the door to prevent theelectric wire from being exposed to the outside and to prevent theelectric wire from being damaged when the door is open.

However, the inner diameter of the hinge shaft cannot help beingrestricted by a door thickness. Accordingly, when the thickness of thedoor is a thinner thickness, when the number of electric wires isincreased, when the diameter of the electric wire is increased, allelectric wires may not be guided through the hinge shaft.

In addition, in the case that the electric wire is not guided throughthe hinge shaft, when the door is open, the electric wires may beexposed, the exposed wires may be moved, may interfere with anotherelement, may be damaged or may be disconnected, thereby causing severeproblems.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The embodiments will be described in detail with reference to thefollowing drawings in which like reference numerals refer to likeelements wherein:

FIG. 1 is a front view illustrating a refrigerator according to anembodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating the refrigerator of FIG. 2 ;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the sub-door of the refrigerator;

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the sub-door;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the transparent panel assembly of thesub-door;

FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of the transparent panelassembly;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken along line 7-7′;

FIGS. 8 and 9 are perspective views illustrating the operating state ofthe transparent panel assembly;

FIG. 10 is a partial perspective view illustrating the assemblingstructure between the upper ends of the sub-door and the main door;

FIG. 11 is a front exploded perspective view the assembling structurebetween the upper ends of the sub-door and the main door;

FIG. 12 is a rear exploded perspective view the assembling structurebetween the upper ends of the sub-door and the main door;

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of the sub-cover according to anembodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 14 is a front view of the sub-cover;

FIG. 15 is a perspective view illustrating the sub-hinge cover accordingto an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 16 is a plan view illustrating the sub-hinge cover;

FIG. 17 is a perspective view of a main hinge cover, according to anembodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 18 is a front view of the main hinge cover;

FIG. 19 is a perspective view illustrating a wire entrance structure ofthe sub-door;

FIG. 20 is a sectional view taken along line 20-20′ of FIG. 10 ;

FIG. 21 is a view illustrating the top surface of the refrigerator;

FIGS. 22 to 25 are views sequentially illustrating the assemblingstructure of a hinge plate, a sub-hinge cover, a sub-cover, and a mainhinge cover, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 26 is a perspective view that the sub-door is open;

FIG. 27 is an enlarged view of part A of FIG. 26 ;

FIG. 28 is a view that the sub-cover of FIG. 27 is separated from therefrigerator;

FIG. 29 is a partial plan view illustrating that the sub-door is open;

FIG. 30 is a perspective view of the main door that is open;

FIG. 31 is an enlarged view of part B of FIG. 30 ;

FIG. 32 is a view illustrating that the main hinge cover of FIG. 31 isseparated.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments will be described in more detail withreference to the accompanying drawings. The present disclosure may,however, be embodied in different forms and should not be construed aslimited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodimentsare provided so that the present disclosure will be thorough andcomplete, and will fully convey the scope of the present disclosure tothose skilled in the art.

FIG. 1 is a front view illustrating a refrigerator according to anembodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 2 is a perspective viewillustrating the refrigerator of FIG. 2 .

As illustrated in the drawings, an outer appearance of a refrigerator 1according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure may beformed by a cabinet 10 defining a storage space and doors configured toopen/close the storage space.

An inner part of the cabinet 10 may be vertically partitioned by abarrier, a refrigerating chamber 12 may be formed at an upper portionthe cabinet 10, and a freezing chamber 13 may be formed at a lowerportion of the cabinet 10.

Further, a control unit 14 configured to control an overall operation ofthe refrigerator 1 is formed on an upper surface of the cabinet 10. Thecontrol unit 14 may be configured to control electrical components forselectively seeing through a see-through part 21 and outputting a screenas well as a cooling operation of the refrigerator 1.

The door may include refrigerating chamber doors 20 and freezing chamberdoors 30. The refrigerating chamber door 20 may be configured toopen/close an opened front surface of the refrigerating chamber 12through pivoting, and the freezing chamber doors 30 may be configured toopen/close an opened front surface of the freezing chamber 13 throughpivoting.

Further, the pair of refrigerating chamber doors 20 are provided on leftand right sides, and the refrigerator chamber 12 may be shielded by thepair of doors Further, the pair of freezing chamber doors 30 areprovided on left and right sides, and the freezing chamber 13 may beopened/closed by the pair of doors In addition, the freezing chamberdoors 30 may be configured to be drawn in a drawer form if necessary,and one or more freezing chamber doors 30 may be configured.

Meanwhile, although an example where a French-type door that includes apair of doors and opens/closes one space by rotating the doors isapplied to a bottom freeze-type refrigerator in which a freezing chamber13 is provided below is illustratively described in the embodiment ofthe present disclosure, the present disclosure may be applied to alltypes of refrigerators having doors regardless of types of therefrigerators.

Further, recessed handle grooves 201 and 301 may be formed at a lowerend of the refrigerating chamber doors 20 and an upper end of thefreezing chamber doors 30. A user inserts a hand into the handle grooves201 and 301 to open/close the refrigerating chamber doors 20 or thefreezing chamber doors 30.

Meanwhile, at least one door may be formed to see through an inner partof the refrigerator 1. The see-through part 21, through which a storagespace in a rear surface of the door and/or an internal space of therefrigerator 1 may be seen, may be formed in the refrigerating chamberdoor 20. The see-through part 21 may form at least a part of the frontsurface of the refrigerating chamber door 20 The see-through part 21 maybe selectively transparent or opaque depending on manipulation by theuser, and the user may accurately identify food accommodated in therefrigerator 1 through the see-through part 21.

Further, according to the embodiment of the present disclosure, a casethat the see-through part 21 is formed in the refrigerating chamber door20 is described as an example. However, the see-through part 21 may beprovided in various other types of refrigerator doors including thefreezing chamber doors 30 according to the structure and shape of therefrigerator 1.

The right refrigerating chamber door 20 (when viewed in FIG. 3 ) of thepair of the refrigerating chamber doors 20 may be dually opened/closed.In detail, the right refrigerating chamber door 20 may include a maindoor 40 configured to open/close the refrigerating chamber 12 and asub-door 50 rotatably arranged in the main door 40 to open/close anopening 41 of the main door 40.

The main door 40 may be formed in the same size as that of a left partof a pair of refrigerating compartment doors 20. The upper end of themain door 40 may be pivotably coupled to the cabinet 10 through a mainhinge 80. Accordingly, the inner storage space of the cabinet 10 may beopen or closed as the main door 40 is rotated. In addition, the maindoor 40 has an opening at the center thereof. A case 43 may be furtherprovided inside the opening to form an additional receiving space.

The sub-door 50 may be provided at the front surface of the main door40. The upper end of the sub-door 50 may be pivotably coupled to themain door 40 by a sub-hinge 70. Accordingly, as the sub-door 50 isrotated, an opening 41 of the main door 40 may be open or closed.

When viewed from the front of the refrigerator, the sub-door 50 may havethe same size as that of the main door 40. In the state that the maindoor 40 and the sub-door 50 are closed, the sub-door 50 has the samesize as that of the refrigerating compartment door 20. Accordingly, therefrigerator may have an outer appearance as if the sub-door 50 and themain door 40 serve as one door. Such a door form may be called “Door InDoor (DID).”

Meanwhile, when a see-through part 21 provided in the sub-door 50becomes transparent, foods received in the case 43 inside the opening 41may be visualized.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the sub-door of the refrigerator. FIG. 4is an exploded perspective view of the sub-door.

As illustrated in the drawings, the sub-door 50 may include an out plate51 defining an outer appearance, a door liner 56 spaced apart from theout plate 51, the transparent panel assembly 60 mounted on an opening ofthe out plate 51 and the door liner 56, and an upper cap decoration 54and a lower cap decoration 55 defining an upper surface and a lowersurface of the sub-door 50, and an outer appearance of the sub-door 50may be defined by a combination of them.

The out plate 51, which defines the front surface and a portion of aperipheral surface of the sub-door 50, may be formed of a plate-shapedstainless material. In addition, the out plate 51 may be formed of thesame material as those of front surfaces of the refrigeratingcompartment door 20 and the freezing compartment door 30.

A plate outdoor 511 is formed at the central portion of the frontsurface of the out plate 51 and the plate opening 511 may be formed tobe shield by the transparent panel assembly 60. In addition, the innerpart of the refrigerator may be viewed through the transparent panelassembly 60 to shield the plate opening 511. Accordingly, the innerregion of the plate opening 511 may be called the see-through part 21.

In addition, a plate bending part 514, which is bent backward, may beformed on a circumferential surface of the plate opening 511. The platebending part 514 is formed along the circumference of the plate opening511 while extending by a predetermined length such that the platebending part 514 is fixedly inserted into a support frame 52 to bedescribed in more detail below. Accordingly, the plate opening 511 maybe defined by the plate bending part 514.

The door liner 56 constitutes the rear surface of the sub-door and has aliner opening 561 formed in a region in which the transparent panelassembly 60 is provided. In addition, the door liner 56 may be providedon the rear surface thereof with a sub-gasket 503 to seal between thesub-door 50 and the main door 40.

In addition, door lights 57 may be provided at both sides of the lineropening 561. The door lights 577 may be provided to light up the rearsurface of the sub-door 50 and the rear portion of the transparent panelassembly 60. The door light 57 may be called a lighting member. Thelighting member may include another light provided in the storage spaceto light up the refrigerator.

Thus, the door lights 57 may illuminate the internal space of thestorage case 43, and at the same time, may functions as auxiliarybacklights for the transparent panel assembly 60 to make the screenclearer when the screen of the transparent panel assembly 60 is output.When the door lights 57 are lighted, an interior of the storage case 43becomes brighter. Thus, the interior of the refrigerator 1 is brighterthan an exterior of the refrigerator 1, so that a rear space of thesub-door 50 may be visualized through the transparent panel assembly 60.

Further, the opening device 59 may be mounted on the door liner 56. Theopening device 59 may include a manipulation member 591 exposed to thelower end of the sub-door 50, a rod 592 extending from the manipulationmember 591, and a locking member 593 protruding from the rear surface ofthe door liner 56. The rod 592 moves the locking member 593 bymanipulation of the manipulation member 592 by the user, so thatopening/closing of the sub-door 50 may be manipulated. In other words,in the state that the main door 40 is closed, only the sub-door 50 maybe open by manipulating the opening device 59.

The upper decoration 54, which constitutes the top surface of thesub-door 50, are coupled to the out plate 51 and the door liner 56. Thetop surface of the upper cap decoration 54 has a decoration opening 542open to communicate with the upper portion of the transparent panelassembly 60 and is covered by a decoration cover 543. In addition, thedecoration cover 543 has a printed circuit board (PCB) mounting part 543a such that PCBs 602, 603, and 604 are mounted to operate electronicparts in the transparent panel assembly 60 and the sub-door 50. The PCBs602, 603, and 604 may be provided in the form of at least one module andmay be provided in a closed space of the upper portion of the sub-door50.

In addition, the space in the upper portion of the sub-door 50 may bedivided into a front part and a rear part about the upper portion of thesupport frame 52. An insulating material 531 a may be provided in thefront surface of the sub-door 50 and the PCBs 602, 603, and 604 may beprovided in the rear space of the sub-door 50. Accordingly, afterperforming a foaming or insulating process of the sub-door 50, the PCBs602,603, and 604 may be separately assembled through the decorationopening 542.

The upper decoration 55, which constitutes the top surface of thesub-door are coupled to the out plate 51 and the door liner 56.

The transparent panel assembly 60 may be arranged between the outerplate 51 and the door liner 56. Further, the transparent panel assembly60 may be configured to shield the plate opening 511 and tee door lineropening 561. Further, the transparent panel assembly 60 may beselectively manipulated by the user in one of a transparent state, atranslucent state, an opaque state, and a screen outputting state.

Thus, the user may selectively see through the internal space of thesub-door 50 through the transparent panel assembly 60, and may view thescreen output through the transparent panel assembly 60 as well.

In addition, the transparent panel assembly 60 may not include a display62 for outputting a screen, and the transparent panel assembly 60without the display 62 may have the same outer appearance as that of thetransparent panel display 60 having the display 62 only with adifference in that the screen is not output.

A support frame 52 is mounted on the periphery of the plate opening 511of the out plate 51 to support the transparent panel assembly 60. Thetransparent panel assembly 60 may be fixedly mounted on the out plate 51by the support frame 52. In particular, the front surface of the outerplate 51 and the front surface of the transparent panel assembly 60 arearranged on the same extension line, so that the front surface of thesub-door 50 may have a sense of unity.

The support frame 52 has a frame opening 521 formed at a center thereof,and the frame opening 521 is formed to be slightly smaller than theplate opening 511, so as to provide a structure on which the transparentpanel assembly 60 may be seated Further, the frame opening 521 may beformed to be smaller than the front panel 61 and to be larger than therear panel 65 Accordingly, when the transparent panel assembly 60 ismounted, the rear panel 65 may sequentially pass through the plateopening 511 and the frame opening 521, and then may be seated on thedoor liner 56 in such a manner that the rear panel 65 is inserted intothe front of the door liner 56.

Further, the support frame 52 has a coupling structure with the outerplate 51, and the outer plate 51 and an end of the transparent panelassembly 60 may be mounted in close contact with each other. Thus, whenviewed the sub-door 50 from the front side, an end of the outer plate 51and a periphery of the transparent panel assembly 60 make close contactwith each other, so that a gap between the out plate 51 and thetransparent panel assembly 60 is rarely viewed or is viewed in a form ofa line, and the outer appearance of the front surface may be viewed ashaving senses of continuity and unity.

The support frame 52 supports the outer plate 51 and the transparentpanel assembly 60 and, at the same time, also has a fixing structure fora heater 532 arranged on the rear surface of the transparent panelassembly 60. Thus, the heater 532 may be arranged on the rear surface ofthe transparent panel assembly 60 while being mounted on the supportframe 52, and at this time, may be arranged on a bezel 611 formed alonga periphery of the front panel 61, so that structures of the heater 532and the support frame 70 may not be exposed to the out.

The heater 532 may heat the out plate 51 making contact with theperiphery of the transparent panel assembly 60, thereby preventing thedew condensation of the front surface of the out plate 51.

Hereinafter, the structure of the transparent panel assembly will bedescribed in detail with reference to accompanying drawings.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the transparent panel assembly of thesub-door. FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of the transparentpanel assembly. FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken along line 7-7′.

As illustrated in the drawings, the transparent panel assembly 60 may beformed to have a size in which the transparent panel assembly 60 mayshield the plate opening 511 and the liner opening 561 from the innerside of the sub-door 50. Further, the see-through part 21 may be formedsuch that a space in the refrigerator 1 may be selectively visualizedand the screen may be output.

The transparent panel assembly 60 may be configured by a plurality ofpanels having a shape of a plate, and may be configured such that thepanels are spaced apart from each other by at least one spacer at aspecific interval. The transparent panel assembly 60 may include thefront panel 61 and the rear panel 65 defining at least the front surfaceand the rear surface thereof, and a spacer connecting the front panel 61and the rear panel 65 between the front panel 61 and the rear panel 65,and may have a structure in which an additional panel and an additionalspacer are further provided in an internal space defined by the spacer.

Further, the display 62 and a light guide plate 64 may be interposedbetween the front panel 61 and the rear panel 65. A first spacer 63 maybe further included to support the display 62 and the light guide plate64, and display lights 68 may be provided to irradiate light to thelight guide plate 64.

The front panel 61 may be provided on the rear surface thereof with afilm to selectively transmit light depending on an ON/OFF state of alight provided inside the refrigerator 1 or a light provided in thesub-door 50 and thus to be shown selectively transparently or opaquely.

In detail, the front panel 61 may have a front protrusion 613 formedtherein to protrude more outward than the rear panel 65. Due tostructural characteristics of the front protrusion 613 inserted into andmounted on the front side of the outer plate 51, the front protrusion613 may protrude more upward/downward/leftward/rightward than the rearpanel 65 and the outer spacer 67. Thus, the front panel 61 defining thefront surface of the transparent panel assembly 60 may further extendoutward the frame opening 701, and thus may be stably supported by thesupport frame 70. The rear panel 65 and the like as well as the outerspacer 67 may be inserted into the frame opening 701.

Meanwhile, the bezel 611 may be formed along a periphery of the rearsurface of the front panel 61. The bezel 611 may be formed by printingwith an opaque color such as black, and may be formed to have apredetermined width such that the outer spacer 67, the first spacer 63,the heater 532, and the like may be covered without being exposed to theoutside.

A touch sensor 612 may be arranged on the rear surface of the frontpanel 61. The touch sensor 612 may be formed on the rear surface of thefront panel 61 in a printing scheme, and may be configured to detect atouch operation on the front panel by the user. Of course, the touchsensor 612 may employ various other schemes such as a film bondingscheme not the printing scheme, in which input may be performed througha touch on the front panel 61.

A touch cable 601 connected to the touch sensor 612 may be provided atan upper end of the front panel 61. The touch cable 601 may be aflexible film type cable such as a flexible flat cable (FFC) and aflexible print cable or a flexible print circuit board (FPC), and aprinted circuit may be printed on the touch cable 601 to form at least aportion of a touch PCB 603. Further, the touch cable 601 may beconnected to the touch PCB 603 provided above the sub-door 50.

Further, in addition to the touch cable 601, display cables 605 anddisplay light cables 606 may be formed to have the same structure. Inthis way, all the cables 601, 605, and 606 formed to have a flat cableshape may extend to an upper end of the transparent panel assembly 60,and may be efficiently arranged on the sub-door 50 having a thinthickness and a wide width. In addition, the cables 601, 605, and 606may provide a simple connection structure with the PCBs 602, 603, and604 arranged above the sub-door 50. Accordingly, wires connectingelectric parts constituting the transparent panel assembly 60 with eachother have a connection structure without being exposed to the outsidethrough the see-through part 21.

Meanwhile, the display 62 may be provided on the rear surface of thefront panel 61. The display 62 may be a liquid crystal display (LCD)module configured to output a screen, and may be transparent to be seenthrough in a state in which the screen is not output.

Source boards 621 may be provided at one end of left and right ends ofthe display 62. The source boards 621, which are adapted to output thescreen of the display 62, may be formed in an assembly state while beingconnected to the display 62. Further, portions of the source boards 621may also include a flexible film type cable structure.

Further, the widths of the source boards 621 may be smaller than thethickness of the transparent panel assembly 60, and may be bent whilethe transparent panel assembly 60 is assembled. At this time, the sourceboards 621 may be arranged between the outer spacer 67 and the firstspacer 63, and may be in contact with an inner surface of the outerspacer 67 while being perpendicular to the front panel 61.

Further, the source boards 621 may be connected to the display cables605, and the display cables 605 may be connected to the T-CON board 602above the sub-door 50.

In detail, when the source boards 621 are arranged on the rear surfaceof the display 62, the source boards 621 may be exposed to the outsidethrough the see-through part 21 due to characteristics of the display 62which is transparent. Further, when the source boards 621 have astructure protruding sideward, there is a problem in that the size ofthe sub-door 50 is enlarged.

Thus, the source boards 621 may be formed at a peripheral end of thedisplay 62, and may be provided between the outer spacer 67 and thefirst spacer 63. Further, the source boards 621 may be formed to have asize corresponding to the outer spacer 67 so as not to depart from theouter spacer 67 in a state in which the source boards 621 are in closecontact with the outer spacer 67.

Meanwhile, opposite ends of the display 62 may be supported by the firstspacer 63. The first spacer 63 may be formed to have a rod shapeextending from an upper end to a lower end of the display 62, and may beformed of aluminum.

The light guide plate 64 may be located behind the display 62, and maybe spaced apart from the display 62 by a predetermined distance by thefirst spacer 63. Here, a sense of depth of the screen output on thedisplay 62 may differ according to the position of the light guide plate64.

The light guide plate 64, which is adapted to diffuse or scatter lightirradiated by the display lights 68, may be formed of various materials.For example, the light guide plate 64 may be formed of polymer, and maybe formed such that a pattern is formed on a surface of the light guideplate 64 or a film is attached to the surface of the light guide plate64. In addition, when the display 62 is not provided, a separate glassor a heat insulating glass instead of the light guide plate 64 may bearranged.

The rear panel 65 may be arranged behind the light guide plate 64. Therear panel 65, which defines the rear surface of the transparent panelassembly 60, may be formed to be larger than the liner opening 561 andmay shield the liner opening 561.

A pair of second spacer 66 may be interposed between the rear panel 65and the light guide plate 64. The second spacers 66 may allow the lightguide plate 64 and the rear panel 65 to be spaced apart from each otherby a predetermined distance. Further, a heat insulating glass 69 may beprovided between the pair of second spacer 66. A multi-layeredinsulating layer may be provided between the light guide plate 64 andthe rear panel 65 by the heat insulating glass 69. Of course, astructure in which the light guide plate 64 and the rear panel 65 arefixed to each other by one second spacer 66 without the heat insulatingglass 69 may be adopted as needed.

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, all the spacers 63, 66, and67 have different structures, but perform support to maintain aninterval between the neighboring panels 61 and 65 or the light guideplate 64. Further, various forms such as a rod and a form in which amoisture absorbent is accommodated may be applied to the spacers 63, 66,and 67.

A space between the light guide plate 64 and the rear panel 65 may besealed by the second spacers 66. Thus, a space between the secondspacers 66 and the light guide plate 64 is made to be in a vacuum stateor an adiabatic gas for insulation, such as argon, is injected into thespace, so that insulation performance may be further improved.

The outer spacer 67 may be formed to have a shape of a rectangularframe, and the outer spacer 67 may connect the rear surface of the frontpanel 61 and the front surface of the rear panel 65 to each other, andat the same time, may define the peripheral surface of the transparentpanel assembly 60.

In detail, the outer spacer 67 defines a periphery of an outer portionof the transparent panel assembly 60, and at the same time, has astructure for connecting the front panel 61 at a specific interval.

A space between the front panel 61 and the rear panel 65, that is, aninternal space of the outer spacer 67, may be completely sealed bycoupling of the outer spacer 67. Further, the inside of the outer spacer67 may be further sealed by the sealant 608 applied to the periphery ofthe outer spacer 67.

The display 62 and the light guide plate 64 may be spacedforward/rearward apart from each other in the space sealed by the outerspacer 67, and the first spacer 63 and the second spacers 66 formaintaining the interval of the light guide plate 64 may be alsoprovided in the internal space of the outer spacer 67.

Of course, an additional insulation panel or a multi-layered glassstructure may be further provided inside the outer spacer 67, and theseconfigurations may be provided inside the space defined by the outerspacer 67.

That is, the overall appearance of the transparent panel assembly 60 maybe defined by the front panel 61, the rear panel 65, and the outerspacer 67, and all the other configurations may be provided inside theouter spacer 67. Thus, only the spaces between the outer spacer 67, thefront panel 61, and the rear panel 65 are sealed, so that themulti-layered panel structure may be completely sealed.

-   -   In particular, even when a plate-shaped structure as well as the        light guide plate 64 is further provided inside the outer spacer        67, if only the outermost outer spacer 67 adheres to the front        panel 61 and the rear panel 65, a sealing structure of the        transparent panel assembly 60 may be completed. Such a sealing        structure may maintain the minimum sealing points even in the        multi-layered structure by a plurality of panels including the        light guide plate 64.

Thus, a probability that external air is introduced into the transparentpanel assembly 60 or dew is condensed inside the transparent panelassembly 60 due to moisture permeation may be minimized. Further, theinside of the outer spacer 67 is made to be in a vacuum state or a gasfor insulation is injected into the outer spacer 67, a heat insulatinglayer may be formed in the entire multi-layered structure inside thetransparent panel assembly 60, thereby further improving insulationperformance.

As a result, as the transparent panel assembly 60 is arranged inside thesub-door 50, the interior of the refrigerator may be seen, the screenmay be output, and an insulation structure may be completed in themulti-layered panel structure, so that insulation performance may beensured.

Further, a space on which the display lights 68 may be mounted may beprovided on an inner surface of the outer spacer 67. The display lights68 may be mounted at an upper end and a lower end of the outer spacer67, and the light guide plate 64 may be located between the displaylights 68 arranged at the upper end and the lower end of the outerspacer 67.

Thus, light irradiated by the display lights 68 may be directed towardan end of the light guide plate 64, and may be moved along the lightguide plate 64 so that the light guide plate 64 may emit light from theentire surface thereof.

Meanwhile, the display lights 68 located at an upper end and a lower endof the inside of the transparent panel assembly 60 may be connected tothe display light cables 606. The display light cables 606 may be formedto have a flexible and flat shape, which is like the touch cable 601 andthe display cables 605.

The display light cables 606 may be connected to the display lights 68mounted inside the outer spacer 67 and may extend toward the outside ofthe transparent panel assembly 60.

Further, the display light cables 606 may extend along a periphery ofthe transparent display 62 so as not to be exposed through thetransparent display 62. Further, the display light cables 606 may extendupwards while being in close contact with the rear panel 65, and may bebent while being in contact with the rear surface of the rear panel 65,to be connected to the docking PCB 604 above the sub-door 50 as needed.

Hereinafter, the operating state of the transparent panel assembly willbe described in more detail with reference to accompanying drawings.

FIGS. 8 and 9 are perspective views illustrating the operating state ofthe transparent panel assembly.

As illustrated in drawings, in the state that the sub-door 50 and themain door 40 are closed, both the door light 57 and the display light 68are maintained in OFF states when any manipulation is not made.

When the door light 57 and the display light 68 are in OFF states, therear space of the sub-door 50 becomes dark and the inner part of therefrigerator is not shown through the see-through part 21 as illustratedin FIG. 2 . Accordingly, when additional manipulation is not made in thestate that the sub-door 50 is closed, the door light 57 is maintained inthe off state so that the inner part is not shown through thesee-through part 212.

In this state, the user turns on the door light 57 by touching the frontpanel 51 or performing an additional manipulation. If the door light 57is switched on, the irradiated light is applied to positions facing fromleft and right positions of the rear portion of the rear panel 65.

The door lights 57 may extend an upper end to a lower end of the rearpanel 65. That is, the light irradiated by the door lights 57 mayilluminate the entire rear region of the rear panel 65 on the oppositeleft and right sides of the rear panel 65.

At this time, when the display lights 86 are switched on together, lightbeams may be irradiated from the upper side and the lower side by thedisplay lights 68, and the light beams may be irradiated from the leftside and the right side by the door lights 57. As a result, the lightbeams may be irradiated from all the upper, lower, left, and right sidesof the see-through part 21, and a region of the see-through part 21 maybe illuminated in the maximum brightness.

The door lights 57 irradiates the light beams in a direction in whichthe light beams face each other, while being adjacent to the rear panel65. The light beams irradiated by the door lights 57 may illuminate theinternal space of the storage case 43, and may illuminate the front sidevia the rear panel 65 as well. Thus, as illustrated in FIG. 8 , the doorlights 57 may serve as lights configured to illuminate a space insidethe refrigerator 1, which is seen through the see-through part 21, andat the same time, may serve as auxiliary backlights through which thedisplay 62 may be seen more clearly.

That is, in a state in which the screen is output through the display62, the space inside the refrigerator 1, that is, a space behind thesub-door 50, may be selectively seen through the see-through part 21.

To allow the space behind the sub-door 50 to be seen through thesee-through part 21, the door lights 57 may be switched on. If theoutput of the screen is not required through the display 62 and only thevisualization of the receiving case 43 is required, the display light 68is switched off and only the door light 57 is maintained in an ON state.

Of course, various representations may be achieved through a combinationof ON/OFF states of the display lights 68 and the door lights 57according to a degree to which the inside of the storage case 43 isvisualized through the see-through part 21.

Further, when the user manipulates the front panel 61 on the frontsurface of the refrigerator 1, the display lights 68 are switched on,the display 62 is switched on, and thus, the transparent panel assembly60 may output the screen, as illustrated in FIG. 9 . At this time, themanipulation of the front panel 61 may correspond to input of any one ofa specific position, the number of times of touches, and a pattern. Ofcourse, if necessary, the manipulation by the user may be detected usinga separate physical button or a sensor.

The display 62 may output the screen for displaying a state of therefrigerator 1 and performing manipulation, and may also output variousscreens for performing the Internet, outputting an image, performingoutput using an external input device, and displaying information onreceived food.

In detail, the display lights 68 arranged at an upper end and a lowerend of the light guide plate 64 may be switched on together with thedisplay 62 by the manipulation by the user. The display lights 68 areswitched on, and thus the light guide plate 64 diffusely reflects anddiffuses light of the display lights 68, so that the light may beirradiated toward the display 62 on the front side in a wholly uniformbrightness.

The light is irradiated from the rear side of the display 62 toward thedisplay 62 by the light guide plate 64, and at the same time, the screenis output based on image information input from the display 62. Thus,the user may identify the clearly output screen through the see-throughpart 21.

Meanwhile, in the refrigerator 1 according to the embodiment of thepresent disclosure as described above, the sub-door 50 and the main door40 may include a plurality of electronic parts such as the display 62,the touch sensor 612, the door light 57, the display light 68, and theheater 532. The arrangement of wires for driving the electronic partsare required and the connection between the wires and the control unit14 provided on the top surface of the cabinet 10 are required.

Hereinafter, the wire arrangement structure of the sub-door 50, the maindoor 40, and the cabinet 10 will be described.

FIG. 10 is a partial perspective view illustrating the assemblingstructure between the upper ends of the sub-door and the main door. FIG.11 is a front exploded perspective view the assembling structure betweenthe upper ends of the sub-door and the main door. FIG. 12 is a rearexploded perspective view the assembling structure between the upperends of the sub-door and the main door.

As illustrated in accompanying drawings, the outer appearance of theupper end of the sub-door 50 may be formed by the upper cap decoration54 provided in the upper end of the sub-door 50. In addition, thedecoration opening may be exposed.

The decoration opening 542 may be shielded by the decoration cover 543mounted on the upper cap decoration 54. The decoration cover 543 may bemounted in the upper cap decoration 54 in the state that the PCBs 602,603, and 604 are mounted in the decoration cover 543.

Meanwhile, the upper cap decoration 54 may have the hinge mounting part541 recessed therein such that the sub-hinge 70 is mounted in the hingemounting part 541. In addition, the hinge mounting part 541 may have asurface making a step difference from a part in which the decorationopening 542 is formed. The hinge mounting part 541 may be defined by thewhole space recessed from one layer of the upper cap decoration 54.

The sub-hinge 70 may be mounted at one side of the hinge mounting part541. The sub-hinge 70, which rotatably couples the upper end of thesub-door 50 to the upper end of the main door 40, may include asub-hinge plate 71 and a sub-hinge cover 72 to shield the upper portionof the sub-hinge plate 71.

In addition, the hinge mounting part 541 may have a sub-hinge hole 544into which the sub-hinge shaft 711 of the sub-hinge plate 71 isinserted. In addition, the sub-hinge shaft 711 may have a hollow tubularshape. As the sub-hinge shaft 711 is inserted into the sub-hinge hole544 to communicate with a space which is formed in the upper portion ofthe sub-door 50 to receive the PCBs 602, 603, and 604. Accordingly, someof wires connected with the PCBs 602, 603, and 604 may be guided to theoutside of the sub-door 50 while passing through the sub-hinge shaft711.

In more detail, a display wire 501 connected with the T-con board, whichis to control the display 62, among the PCBs 602, 603, and 604 passesthrough the sub-hinge hole 544, that is, the sub-hinge shaft 711.

The display wire 501 includes a multiple stands of fine wires due to thestructural characteristic thereof. Such a structural characteristicmakes it difficult to provide a connection structure at the outside ofthe sub-door 50 by using connectors to be coupled to each other.Accordingly, the display wire 501 may be directly connected to thecontrol unit 14 from the t-con board 602. In this case, the display wire501 passes through the sub-hinge shaft 711. The display wire 501 may bereferred to a first wire.

The display wire 501 may pass through the sub-hinge shaft 711 in thestate that the display wire 501 is surrounded by a protection member 501a such as a mesh tube or a shrink tube. Accordingly, the display wire501 may be prevented from being damaged and noise may be prevented.

Meanwhile, a wire entrance part 545 is further formed at one side of theupper cap decoration 54. The wire entrance part 545 has an openingallowing wires 502, 503, 504, and 505, which fail to pass through thesub-hinge shaft 711 due to the restricted diameter of the sub-hingeshaft 711. The wires 502, 503, 504, and 505 may be referred to as “thirdwires.”

In detail, the wire entrance part 545 may be open toward the hingemounting part 541. The wire entrance part 545 is formed to be open at aposition that is not shielded by the decoration cover 543 and formed tocommunicate with a space in which the PCBs 602, 603, and 604.Accordingly, the wires connected to the PCBs 602, 603, and 604 may beeasily withdrawn toward the hinge mounting part 541 through the wireentrance part 545.

The wires guided through the wire entrance part 545 may be wiresconnected with electronic parts inside the sub-door 50 except for thedisplay wire 501. For example, the wires 502, 503, 504, and 505 mayinclude at least one of a heater wire 502 connected with the heater 532,a touch sensor wire 503 connected with the touch sensor 612, a groundwire 504 to prevent static electricity caused in manipulating the touchsensor 612, and a microphone wire 505 provided in the sub-door 50 andconnected with the microphone when a microphone is provided to receive auser voice. In addition, if necessary, other wires (such as a door lightwire connected with the door light 57) connected with electronic partsprovided in the sub-door 50 may be input and output through the wireentrance part 545.

Meanwhile, the upper cap decoration 54 may include a sub-cover 90. Thesub-cover 90 is to shield the wires 502, 503, 504, and 505 extendingfrom the wire entrance part 545 to the sub-hinge cover 72. The sub-cover90 may be formed to extend from the wire entrance part 545 to the upperportion of the sub-hinge shaft 711. The sub-cover 90 may be referred toas a first cover.

In addition, the sub-cover 90 may be configured to be fixedly mounted onthe upper cap decoration 54 and seated in a cover seating part 721formed in the sub hinge cover 72 in the state that the sub-cover 90 ismounted.

In other words, in the state that the sub-door 50 is closed, thesub-cover 90 is maintained in a seating state in the cover seating part721. When the sub-door 50 is open, the sub-cover 90 rotates togetherwith the sub-door 50 in the state that the sub-cover 90 is coupled tothe sub-door 50. The wires 502, 503, 504, and 504 guided from the wireentrance part 545 may be guided to the position corresponding to thesub-hinge shaft 711 along with the sub-cover 90 without being exposed tothe outside.

The sub-hinge plate 71 may be fixedly mounted on the upper end of themain door 40 and the sub-hinge shaft 711 may be axially coupled to thesub-hinge hole 544 of the sub-door 50. In addition, the hinge plate 71may be provided at the upper portion thereof with the sub-hinge cover72. The sub-hinge cover 72 may be configured to shield the sub-hingeplate 71 while guiding the arrangement of the wires 502, 503, 504, and505 guided from the sub-hinge plate 71. The sub-hinge cover 72 may beconfigured not to be exposed to the outside even when the sub-door 50and the main door 40 are rotated. IN addition, the sub-hinge cover 72may shield a portion of the main hinge plate 81. The sub-hinge cover 72may be referred to as a second cover.

The sub-hinge cover 72 may have a structure of coupling the sub-hingeshaft 711 to the main hinge shaft 811. In addition, the sub-hinge cover72 may be formed to shield both upper portions of the sub-hinge shaft711 and the main hinge shaft 811 in the state that the sub-hinge cover72 is mounted in the main door 40.

Accordingly, the wires 502, 503, 504, and 505 of the sub-door 50 may beguided via the sub-hinge shaft 711 and the main hinge shaft 811 and maybe shielded by the cover member in the process that the sub-door 50 andthe main door 40 are rotated to be prevented from being exposed to theoutside. In addition, in the process that the sub-door 50 and the maindoor 40 are rotated, the wires may be prevented from being moved orinterfering.

The hinge cover 72 may be interposed in a space between the sub-cover 90and the main hinge cover 82. In addition, in the state that the sub-door50 is closed, the cover seating part 721 may be formed such that thesub-cover 90 is seated in the cover seating part 721.

Meanwhile, the main hinge cover 82 may be mounted on the top surface ofthe cabinet 10. The main hinge cover 82, which shields the main hingeplate 81, receives the main hinge plate 81 in the state that the mainhinge cover 82 is mounted in the cabinet 10. The main hinge cover 90 maybe referred to as a third cover.

In this case, a portion of the main hinge cover 82 may extend to theupper portion of the main hinge shaft 811. In addition, the main hingecover 82 may be configured to overlap with one side of the sub-hingecover 72 at the upper portion of the main hinge shaft 811.

Accordingly, in the state that the sub-hinge cover 72 is mounted, thesub-cover 90 is placed at the upper portion of the sub-hinge shaft 711and the main hinge cover 82 may be placed at the upper portion of themain hinge shaft 811.

Hereinafter, elements of the sub-cover 90, the sub-hinge cover 72, andthe main hinge cover 82 will be described in more detail with referenceto accompanying drawings.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of the sub-cover according to anembodiment of the present disclosure and FIG. 14 is a front view of thesub-cover.

Although not illustrated in FIGS. 13 and 14 , the sub-cover 90 may bemounted to cross the hinge mounting part 541 and may extend from thewire entrance part 545 to the sub-hinge shaft 711.

The sub-cover 90 may be configured to form the same plane as the topsurfaces of the upper cap decoration 54 and the decoration cover 543 inthe state that the sub-cover 90 is mounted in the upper cap decoration54. A coupling part 91 may be formed at one end of the sub-cover 90. Thecoupling part 91 may extend toward the decoration cover 543 such thatthe coupling part 91 overlaps with one side of the decoration cover 543.In addition, the coupling part 91 may be formed to be seated in thecover mounting part 543 b formed with a step difference in thedecoration cover 543.

In addition, the coupling part 91 may be formed therein with a couplinghole 911 such that a coupling member 92 such as a screw passes throughthe coupling hole 911. The coupling hole 911 may be disposed above thesame position as that of the coupling hole 543 c formed in thedecoration cover 543. Accordingly, the sub-cover 90 and the decorationcover 543 may be simultaneously fixed to one coupling member 92.

The sub-cover 90 may have an opening formed at a front surface thereofmaking contact with an inner surface of the hinge mounting part 541 anda shielding part 93 may be formed at a rear surface of the sub-cover 90facing the main door. Accordingly, in the state that the sub-cover 90 ismounted, a space is formed in the sub-cover 90 to withdraw the wires502, 503, 504, and 505 from the wire entrance part 545. In addition, thewires 502, 503, 504, and 505 may not be prevented from being exposedfrom the wire entrance part 545 to the sub-hinge shaft 711 in the statethat the sub-cover 90 is mounted.

Meanwhile, a round part 94 is formed at an end portion of the sub-cover90 and a portion of the round part 94 is cut out and open. Since thesub-cover 90 extends the sub-hinge shaft 711, when the sub-door 50 isrotated, an end portion of the sub-cover 90 is formed not to interferewith the upper cap decoration 54.

A seating surface 95, which is bent, may be formed at a lower end of theshielding part 93. The seating surface 95 shields a portion of a bottomsurface of an open inner space of the sub-cover 90 while providing aseating surface to the cover mounting part 721 formed in the sub-hingecover 72. Accordingly, in the state that the sub-door 50 is open, thewires 502, 503, 504, and 505 guided through the sub-cover 90 isprevented from being exposed and prevented from interfering with thesub-hinge cover 72 or the main door 40.

In addition, the seating surface 95 is formed on one end thereof with aninclination surface 951 making close contact with a wall surfaceextending toward the upper portion of the hinge mounting part and isformed on an opposite end thereof with an open space to guide the wires502, 503, 504, and 505 toward the sub-hinge shaft 711.

In addition, the sub-cover 90 may be formed therein with a couplingguide part 96 extending downward. The coupling guide part 96 may beconfigured to be inserted from the inner surface of the sub-cover 90toward the wire entrance part 545.

As illustrated in FIG. 20 in detail, the coupling guide part 96 mayextend downward from the inner top surface of the sub-cover 90 and theextending end portion may be bent toward the inner part of the wireentrance part 545. Accordingly, when the sub-cover 90 is mounted on theupper cap decoration 54, the upper end of the wire entrance part 545 isinserted into the coupling guide part 96 such that the wire entrancepart 545 is coupled to the coupling guide part 96. In addition, the endportion of the seating surface 95 makes contact with the surfaceextending vertically from the hinge mounting part 541 such that the endportion of the seating surface 95 is arranged at an exact position ofthe sub-cover 90. In this state, the coupling member 92 is coupled suchthat the sub-cover 90 is fixedly mounted inside the hinge mounting part541.

Due to such a structure, the inner part of the upper cap decoration 54may communicate with the inner part of the sub-cover 90 through the wireentrance part 545. In addition, the wires inside the sub-door 50 may beguided into the sub-cover 90 through the wire entrance part 545.

FIG. 15 is a perspective view illustrating the sub-hinge cover accordingto an embodiment of the present disclosure, and FIG. 16 is a plan viewillustrating the sub-hinge cover.

Although not illustrated in FIGS. 15 and 16 , the entire portion of thebottom surface the sub-hinge cover 721 is open. Accordingly, the entireportion of the sub-hinge plate 71 is received and the wires 502, 503,504, and 505 withdrawn from the sub-door 50 may be configured to beguided.

The sub-hinge cover 72 may mainly include a door mounting part 722mounted in the main door 40, a cover extending part 723 extending fromthe door mounting part 722, and a shaft cover part placed on thesub-hinge shaft 711 and the main hinge shaft 811.

In more detail, the door mounting part 722, which allows the sub-hingecover 72 to be fixedly mounted on the main door 40, has a screw hole 722a formed at one side of the door mounting part 722 for coupling with thescrew such that the sub-hinge cover 72 is fixedly mounted on the upperend of the main door 40. The door mounting part 722 may be formed in thesize to receive the sub-hinge plate 71 fixed to the upper end of themain door 40.

The cover extending part 723 is formed at one side of the door mountingpart 722 to shield the sub-hinge plate 71 in the extending direction ofthe sub-hinge plate 71. The cover extending part 723 may be formed inthe shape sufficient to place the cover extending part 713 in the spacebetween the sub-cover 90 and the main hinge cover 82.

In addition, the cover mounting part 721 may be formed at one side ofthe cover extending part 7723. The cover mounting part 721 may be formedin the shape of making a step difference from the top surface of thecover extending part 723 and may be formed to be seated in the seatingsurface 95 of the sub-cover 90 in the state that the sub-door 50 isclosed.

The sub-cover 90 may be mounted while being spaced apart from the bottomsurface of the hinge mounting part 541. When the sub-door 50 is closed,the cover mounting part 721 may be inserted into the space between thefloor of the hinge mounting part 541 and the bottom surface of thesub-cover 72.

In addition, the extending end portion of the cover extending part 723,that is, the bottom surfaces of the main shaft cover part 724 and thesub-shaft cover part 725 may have a cover step part 723 a cut out tohave the step structure upward. The cover step part 723 a may be formedto have a step structure higher than the sub-hinge plate 71 to preventthe interference with the sub-hinge plate 71 when the sub-door isrotated.

A shaft cover part may be formed at the end portion of the coverextending part 723. The shaft cover part may include a sub-shaft coverpart 725 placed at the upper portion of the sub-hinge cover 72 and amain shaft cover part 724 placed at the upper portion of the main hingeshaft 811. The sub-shaft cover part 725 may be referred to as a firstcover part and the main shaft cover part 724 may be referred to as asecond cover part.

The sub-shaft cover part 725 may be interposed between the sub-hingeshaft 711 and the extending end portion of the sub-cover 90. Inaddition, the sub-shaft cover part 725 may be formed to make contactwith the top surface of the sub-hinge plate 71 and the bottom surface ofthe sub-cover 90. The sub-hinge cover 72, the sub-shaft cover part 725,and the end portion of the sub-cover 90 may be vertically aligned in aline and inner spaces thereof may communicate with each other.

In addition, the sub-shaft cover part 725 may be maintained at a fixedposition together with the sub-hinge shaft when the sub-door is rotated,and has a structure of rotating together with the sub-hinge plate 71when the main door 40 is rotated.

The wires 502, 503, 504, and 505 passing through the inner part of thesub-cover 90 may be introduced through a hollow part 725 a of thesub-shaft cover part 725. The wire 501, which has passed through thesub-hinge shaft 711, may be guided along the sub-shaft cover part 725.Due to such a structure, the wires 502, 503, 504, and 505 may be guidedwhile passing through the rotation center of the sub-door 50.Accordingly, the wires 502, 503, 504, and 505 may be guided to the maindoor 40 in the state that the length of the wires is not changed ormoved even when the sub-door 50 is rotated.

The main shaft cover part 724 may be formed at the end portion of thecover extending part 723 and may be formed apart from the sub-shaftcover part 725. The main shaft cover part 724 has a hollow inner part.The size of the hollow 724 a of the main shaft cover part 724 may beformed in the size corresponding to the size of the main hinge shaft811.

The main shaft cover part 724 may be positioned at the upper portion ofthe main hinge shaft 811 and may be positioned at the lower portion ofthe main extending part 822 of the main hinge cover 82. In other words,the main shaft cover part 724 may be interposed between the main hingeshaft 811 and the main extending part 822, and the main shaft cover part724 and the end portions of the main hinge shaft 811, and the mainextending part 822 may be aligned in a line with each other. Inaddition, the main hinge shaft 811 and the inner parts of the main shaftcover part 724 and the main extending part 822 may communicate with eachother. Accordingly, the wire 401 in the main door 40 extending to theoutside through the main hinge shaft 811 may be guided into the mainextending part 822 through the hollow 724 a of the main shaft cover part724. The wire 401 inside the main door 40 may include a wire connectedwith a door switch to sense the opening/closing of the sub-door 50, awire connected with a main heater to prevent dew concentration on theouter surface of the main door 40 by heating the periphery of the maindoor 40, or wires connected with other electronic parts. The wires 401passing through the main hinge shaft 724 may be called “second wire.”

Meanwhile, the sub-shaft cover part 725 and the main shaft cover part724 may be connected with each other through a cover connection part726. The cover connection part 726, which connects a hollow 725 a of thesub-shaft cover part 725 with a hollow 724 a of the main shaft coverpart 724, may be formed by cutting out one side of the cover extendingpart 723.

The width of the cut-out portion of a cover connection part 726 may beformed to have the intermediate value between the diameter of the hollow725 a of the sub-shaft cover part 725 and the diameter of the hollow 724a of the main shaft cover part 724. In addition, the diameter of thehollow 725 a of the sub-shaft cover part 725 may be formed to be smallerthan the diameter of the hollow 724 a of the main shaft cover part 724.

The sub-door 50 may have a thickness thinner than the thickness of themain door 40 due to the structural characteristic of the sub-door 50.Accordingly, the diameter of the sub-hinge shaft 711 to support thesub-door 50 may be more reduced in proportion to the extent ofrestricting the diameter of the thickness of the sub-door 50. Due tosuch a reason, all wires inside the sub-door 50 may not pass through thesub-hinge shaft 711 and some wires 502, 503, 504, and 505 pass throughthe wire entrance part 545.

However, the sub-door 50 and the main door 40 have structures open byrotation. The wires 501, 502, 503, 504, and 505 withdrawn from thesub-door 50 may be disposed to pass through the sub-hinge shaft 711 andthe main hinge shaft 811. Accordingly, even when the sub-door 50 and themain door 40 are rotated, there is possible a structure in which thelengths of the wires are not changed and interference is not made.

Due to such a structure, the sub-hinge cover 72 may prevent the wiresguided to the cabinet 10 through the sub-door 50 and the main door 40from being exposed to the outside. Even if any one of the sub-door 50and the main door 40 is rotated, the wires may be maintained to beshielded by the sub-hinge cover 72.

Meanwhile, the wires 502, 503, 504, and 505 may have structuresconnected with a connector 506 to facilitate assembling and maintenance.The wires may be connected with each other through the coupling betweenthe connectors 506 inside the main hinge cover 82 or the sub-hinge cover72. When the wires 502, 503, 504, and 505 withdrawn through the wireentrance part 545 are connected with the connector 506, the width W1 ofthe connector 506 is greater than the diameter D1 of the hollow 725 a ofthe sub-shaft cover part 725 and thus the connector 506 fails to passthrough the hollow 725 a of the sub-shaft cover part 725. Accordingly,the wires connected with the connector 506 may be inserted into thehollow 724 a of the main shaft cover part 724 having a larger diameterand then may move the hollow 725 a of the sub-shaft cover part 725through the cut-out cover connection part 726.

In more detail, as illustrated in FIG. 16 , the wires 502, 503, 504, and505 are inserted through the hollow 724 a of the main shaft cover part724 before the sub-hinge cover 72 is assembled. In this case, the widthW of the connector 506 connected with the wires may be smaller than thediameter D1 of the hollow 724 a of the main shaft cover part 724 and maybe greater than the diameter D2 of the hollow 725 a of the sub-shaftcover part 725. The wires 502, 503, 504, and 505 inserted through thehollow 724 a of the main shaft cover part 724 may be moved along thecut-out part of the cover connection part 726 and may be positionedinside the hollow 725 a of the sub-shaft cover part 725.

The connector 506 of the wires 502, 503, 504, and 505 moved to thehollow 725 a of the sub-shaft cover part 725 through the coverconnection part 726 may be positioned inside the sub-hinge cover 72 andguided to the main hinge 80 or may be connected with another wirethrough the coupling between the connectors inside the sub-hinge cover72.

A wire restriction part 727 may be further formed at the cut-out endportion of the cover connection part 726. The wire restriction part 727may protrude adjacent to the sub-shaft cover part 725 and may extend tobe inclined or rounded toward the sub-shaft cover part 725. Although thewires 502, 503, 504, and 505 are able to be moved to the hollow 725 a ofthe sub-shaft cover part 725 via the wire restriction part 727 throughthe cut-out space of the cover connection part 726, the wires 502, 503,504, and 505 may be restricted by the wire restriction part 727 when thewires 502, 503, 504, and 505 are moved toward the cover connection part726 from the hollow 725 a of the sub-shaft cover part 725. Accordingly,the wires 502, 503, 504, and 505 inserted into the hollow 725 a of thesub-shaft cover part 725 may be maintained to be received in the hollow725 a of the sub-shaft cover part 725.

Meanwhile, the cover extending part 723 may be formed at an end portionthereof with a stopping part 728 recessed inwardly. The stopping part728 may restrict the sub-door 50 as the sub-door 50 is inserted into thestopping part 728 and thus is not rotated any more when the sub-door 50is rotated and open at a set angle. The stopping part 728 may be formedin a gap between the main shaft cover part 724 and the sub-shaft coverpart 725. The stopping part 728 may be formed such that the side end ofthe sub-door 50 is inserted into the stopping part 728.

FIG. 17 is a perspective view of a main hinge cover, according to anembodiment of the present disclosure. In addition, FIG. 18 is a frontview of the main hinge cover.

Although not shown in drawings, the main hinge cover 82 is formed in thebottom surface thereof with an opening and formed to receive the mainhinge plate 81 in the state that the main hinge cover 82 is mounted inthe cabinet 10. The main hinge cover 82 may include a main mounting part821 mounted in the cabinet 10 and a main extending part 822 extendingfrom the main mounting part 821 toward the main hinge shaft 811.

The main mounting part 821 may be configured to receive the main hingeplate 81 and may receive wires withdrawn from the sub-door 50 and themain door 40 and connectors. In addition, the main mounting part 821 maybe formed therein with a space to receive many elements such as a switchfor sensing opening and closing of the main door 40, a sensor formeasuring humidity, and a smart diagnostic PCB for remotely diagnosingthe operation of the refrigerator.

A main cover fixing part 823 may be formed at the periphery of the mainmounting part 821. A screw may be coupled to the main cover fixing part823. The main hinge cover 82 may be fixed onto the cabinet 10 by thecoupling of the screw. A cover opening 824 may be formed in one side ofthe rear surface of the main mounting part 821. The cover opening 824may be open toward the control unit 14. Wires 401, 501, 502, 503, 504,and 505 guided into the main hinge cover 82 may be open toward thecontrol unit 14 via the cover of the main hinge 80.

A connection cover 101 may be further interposed between the coveropening 824 and the control unit 14. The connection cover 101 may beformed such that the bottom surface is open. The wires 401, 501, 502,503, 504, and 505 are received inside the connection cover 101 and thusthe wires withdrawn from the main hinge cover 82 may be guided to thecontrol unit 14. The wires may be prevented from being exposed to theoutside and may directly connected with the control unit 14 withoutpassing through the inner part of the cabinet 10, by the connectioncover 101.

The main extending part 822 may be formed to extend along the main hingeplate 81 from the front end of the main mounting part 821. The mainextending part 822 may be received in the main hinge plate 81 whileextending to the main hinge shaft 811. The end portion of the mainextending part 822 is positioned above the main hinge shaft 811. Themain hinge shaft 811 and the end portions of the main shaft cover part724 and the main extending part 822 are positioned on the same extendingline and thus wires passing through the main hinge shaft 811 or the mainshaft cover part 724 may be introduced into the main extending part 822.

Meanwhile, a main cover step part 822 a may be formed with a stepdifference at an upper portion of the main extending part 822. The maincover step part 822 a may position the main shaft cover part 724 of thesub-hinge cover 72 to be positioned therein. Accordingly, in the statethat the main hinge cover 82 is mounted, even when the main door 40 isopen or closed, the wires introduced into the main hinge cover 82through the main shaft cover part 724 are prevented from being exposedto the outside.

The arrangement of wires withdrawn from the sub-door 50 in therefrigerator having the configuration according to an embodiment of thepresent disclosure will be described in more detail.

FIG. 19 is a perspective view illustrating a wire entrance structure ofthe sub-door, and FIG. 20 is a sectional view taken along line 20-20′ ofFIG. 10 .

Although illustrated in FIGS. 19 and 20 , the display wire 501 amongwires inside the sub-door 50 is guided from the inner part of thesub-door 50 to the outside of the sub-door 50 through the sub-hingeshaft 711.

In this case, the sub-hinge hole 544, in which the sub-hinge shaft 711is mounted, may be formed in the upper cap decoration 54. The sub-hingehole 544 may be formed in a hinge shaft bush 547 separately provided.The hinge shaft bush 547 may be mounted in the upper cap decoration 54and the sub-hinge shaft 7111 may be inserted into the hinge shaft bush547.

The display wire 501 guided upward through the sub-hinge shaft 711 mayinclude about 30-40 strands of thin wires and may pass through thesub-hinge shaft 711, in the form of one bundle surrounded by amesh-shaped protective member 501 a. The display wire 501 may extend tothe main shaft cover part 724 along the cover connection part 726through the lower portion of the sub-shaft cover part 715 of thesub-hinge cover 72. In addition, the display wire 501 may upwardly passthrough the hollow 724 a of the main shaft cover part 724 and may beguided into the main hinge cover 82.

In other words, the display wire 501 passes through the rotation centerof the sub-door 50 and the main door 40 which are rotated. Accordingly,when the sub-door 50 or the main door 40 is rotated, the display wire501 may not be moved or the length of the display wire 501 is notchanged. In addition, the display wire 501 may be prevented from beingexposed to the outside and may be hidden when guided through thesub-hinge plate 71, the sub-hinge cover 72 and the main hinge cover 82inside the sub-door 50. In particular, the display wire 501 may becovered by the sub-hinge cover 72 maintained in a fixing state even whenthe sub-door 50 and the main door 40 are open or closed. The displaywire 50 may be prevented from interfered with the sub-door 50 and themain door 40.

The inner diameter of the sub-hinge cover 72 is less than the thicknessof the sub-door 50. Accordingly, other wires 502, 503, 504, and 505 maynot be introduced through the sub-hinge cover 72. Wires, such as theheater wire 502, the microphone wire 505 or the door light wire exceptfor the display wire 501 among the wires inside the sub-door 50 mayincome or outcome through the wire entrance part 545 adjacent to thehinge mounting part 541.

The wires 502, 503, 504, and 505 withdrawn through the wire entrancepart 545 may be guided toward the sub-hinge plate 71 along the innerspace of the sub-cover 90. The wires may extend to the upper portion ofthe sub-shaft cover part 725 and may vertically pass through the hollow725 a of the sub-shaft cover part 725 to be guided into a lower space ofthe sub-hinge cover 72. In this case, since the wires are positioned atthe upper portion of the sub-hinge shaft 711, even if the sub-door 50 isrotated, the lengths of the wires are not changed, the wires are notmoved, and the arrangement state of the wires is maintained withoutchange.

Meanwhile, the wires 502, 503, 504, and 505 may be guided to the mainshaft cover part 724 along the cover connection part 726 inside thesub-hinge cover 72, similarly to the display wire 501. In addition, thewires may be guided into the main hinge cover 82 by vertically passingthrough the hollow 724 a of the main shaft cover part 724. In otherwords, the wires may be moved along the sub-cover 90, the sub-hingecover 72, and the main hinge cover 82. Accordingly, when the sub-door 50is open or closed, the wires are not exposed to the outside and do notinterfere with another element. In addition, as the wires are arrangedto pass through the rotation center of the sub-door 50 and the rotationcenter of the main door 40, even if the sub-door 50 or the main door 40is rotated, the wires may be maintained in a stationary arrangementstructure without displacement.

Meanwhile, the wires 401 may be withdrawn out of the main hinge 80through the main hinge shaft 811 and may be guided into the main hingecover 82 through the hollow 724 a of the main shaft cover part 724. Atleast one of the wires 401, 502, 503, 504, and 505 introduced into themain hinge cover 82 may be connected with wires connected with thecontrol unit, which is provided in the main hinge cover 82, in aconnector manner. At least some of wires inside the main hinge cover 82may be guided toward the control unit 14 through the cover opening 824of the main hinge cover 82.

A connection cover 101 may be further provided between the cover opening824 of the main hinge cover 82 and the control unit 14. The wires 401,501, 502, 503, 504, and 505 may be connected with the control unit 14without being exposed to the outside through the inner part of theconnection cover 101 and 22.

The control unit 14 may be configured to control electrical componentsfor selectively seeing through a see-through part 21 and outputting ascreen as well as a cooling operation of the refrigerator 1. Inaddition, a main PCB 141, a display PCB 142, and an adaptor 143 may beprovided in the control unit 14.

The freezing cycle and the overall operations of the refrigerator 1 maybe controlled by the main PCB 141. The main PCB 141 may be connectedwith the display PCB 142 to receive the operation information of thetransparent panel assembly 60.

The main PCB 141 may be connected with a camera to capture the innerpart of the refrigerator and allow a user to utilize image information,and a microphone and a speaker to input and output a voice. The main PCB141 may be connected with an additional communication module tocommunicate with an external device and a sub-device.

In addition, an adaptor 143 may be further provided in the control unit14 to convert power supplied to the transparent panel assembly 60. DCpower may be converted into AC power appropriate to the driving of thetransparent panel assembly 60 by the adaptor 143. In addition, since theadaptor 143 has a larger size and represents higher heat emission, theadaptor 143 is placed in the control unit 14 on the cabinet 10 ratherthan the sub-door 50 for more efficient insulation and layout.

The transparent panel assembly 60 is placed in the internal space of thesub-door 50 and the outer space of the transparent panel assembly 60 maybe narrowed due to the thinner thickness. Accordingly, to place the PCBs602, 603, and 604 in the internal space of the sub-door 50, the minimumnumber of PCBs 602, 603, and 604 necessary for the driving of theelectronic parts inside the transparent panel assembly 60 and thesub-door 50 are provided. In addition, remaining elements have to bearranged in the display PCB 142 on the top surface of the cabinet 10 andhave a structure in which the PCBs 602, 603, and 604 and the display PCBare connected with each other by the wires. Accordingly, moreeffectively, the PCBs 602, 603, and 604 may be arranged at the upper endof the sub-door 50 connected with the display PCB 142 within theshortest distance.

As the PCBs 602, 603, and 604 are provided at the upper ends of thesub-door 50 such that the cables 601, 605, and 606 are upwardly guidedalong the periphery of the transparent panel assembly 60 and are easilyconnected with the PCBs 602, 603, and 604 at the upper ends of thesub-door 50. The PCBs 602, 603, and 604 for the driving of theelectronic parts inside the transparent panel assembly 60 and thesub-door 50 are provided at the upper portion of the sub-door 50,thereby prevent the PCBs 602, 603, and 604 and the cables 601, 605, and606 from being exposed through the transparent panel assembly 60 whenviewed from the outside.

FIGS. 22 to 25 sequentially illustrate assembling structures of thehinge plate, the sub-hinge cover, the sub-cover, and the main hingecover according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

As illustrated in FIG. 22 , the main door 40 is pivotably mounted on thecabinet 10 by the main hinge plate 81 mounted on the top surface of thecabinet 10. In addition, the sub-door 50 is pivotably mounted on themain door 40 by the sub hinge 70 mounted on the top surface of the maindoor 40.

In this case, the main hinge shaft 811 is inserted into a main hingehole 444 of the main door 40 and the sub-hinge shaft 711 is insertedinto a sub-hinge hole 544 of the sub-door. All of the main hinge shaft811 and the sub-hinge shaft 711 have hollow structures. Accordingly, thewires are withdrawn out of the main door 40 and the sub-door 50 throughthe main hinge shaft 811 and the sub-hinge shaft 711.

The wire 401 withdrawn through the main hinge shaft 811 may include awire for a door switch or a wire for a main door heater. In addition,the wire withdrawn through the sub-hinge shaft 711 may include thedisplay wire 501. As the sub-hinge shaft 711 is restricted in diameter,all wires inside the sub-door may not income or outcome. To preventnoise, preferably, the display wire 501 may be independently withdrawnout of the sub-door 50 through the sub-hinge shaft 711.

Meanwhile, the wire entrance part 545 is open toward the hinge mountingpart 541 in the state that the decoration cover 543 is mounted. Inaddition, the wires inside the sub-door 50, that is, the touch sensorwire 503, the heater wire 502, the ground wire 504, and the microphonewire 505 may be withdrawn out of the sub-door 50 through the wireentrance part 545.

As illustrated in FIG. 23 , in the state that the wires 502, 503, 504,and 505 are withdrawn out of the main hinge shaft 811, the sub-hingeshaft 711, and the wire entrance part 545, the sub-hinge cover 72 may bemounted. The sub-hinge cover 72 may be fixed mounted on the upper end ofthe sub-door 50. In this case, the sub-shaft cover part 725 of thesub-cover 90 may be positioned at an upper portion of the sub-hingeshaft 711 and the main shaft cover part 724 of the sub-cover 90 may bepositioned at an upper portion of the main hinge shaft 811.

In this state, the wires 401 withdrawn through the main hinge shaft 811are withdrawn upward through a hollow structure 724 a of the main shaftcover part 724.

In addition, the display wire 501 withdrawn through the sub-hinge shaft711 is withdrawn upwardly through a hollow structure 724 a of the mainshaft cover part 724 while passing through the sub-shaft cover part 725of the sub-hinge cover 72 and the inner part of the cover connectionpart 726. In this case, the display wire 501 may be moved along theinside of the sub-hinge cover 72 and covered by the sub-hinge cover 72.

In addition, the wires 502, 503, 504, and 505 withdrawn through the wireentrance part 545 may be exposed to the inside of the hinge mountingpart 541.

As illustrated in FIG. 24 , the sub-cover 90 is mounted in the hingemounting part 541. The sub-cover 90 is disposed to cross the hingemounting part 541 and may extend to the end portion of the hingemounting part 541 facing the wire entrance part 545.

The wire entrance part 545 may be shielded by the sub-cover 90. Thewires withdrawn from the wire entrance part 545 through the inside ofthe sub-cover 90 may be guided as illustrated in FIG. 20 .

The sub-cover 90 and the decoration cover 545 may be fixed to the upperdecoration 54 by the coupling member 92 coupled to the sub-cover 90. Inaddition, even when the sub-door 50 is rotated, the sub-cover 90 ismaintained in a fixed state.

The wires 502, 503, 504, and 505 guided along the sub-cover 90 may beinserted into the hollow 725 a of the sub-shaft cover part 725positioned at a lower portion of the end portion of the sub-cover 90.The wires inserted into the upper portion of the hollow structure 725 amay be guided along the sub-hinge cover 72. The wires inside thesub-hinge cover 72 may be withdrawn upward through the hollow structure724 a of the main shaft cover part 724.

In addition, when the wires 502, 503, 504, and 505 have a structureconnected with the connector 506, the wires inside the main door 40 maybe coupled to the connector inside the sub-cover 90. In this case, thewires 502, 503, 504, and 505 withdrawn out of the wire entrance part 545may have a structure connected with wires passing through the main hingeshaft 811 from the main door 40.

As described above, the wires of the sub-door 50 passes through thesub-shaft cover part 725 positioned at the upper portion of the rotationcenter of the sub-door 50 and the main shaft cover part 724 positionedat the upper portion of the rotation center of the main door 40. Inaddition, the wires 401 of the main door 40 may be guided to the outsidethrough the main shaft cover part 724 positioned at the upper portion ofthe rotation center of the main door 40.

As illustrated in FIG. 25 , the main hinge cover 82 may be mounted onthe top surface of the cabinet 10. As the main hinge cover 82 ismounted, the entire portion of the main hinge plate 81 and the mainshaft cover part 724 are shielded. Accordingly, the wires 401, 501, 502,503, 504, and 505 withdrawn through the main shaft cover part 724 may beshielded inside the main hinge cover 82.

If necessary, some of the wires may be connected by the connector 506inside the main hinge cover 82.

In addition, the wires 401, 501, 502, 503, 504, and 505 guided to theinside of the main hinge cover 82 may be guided to the outside of themain hinge cover 82 through the cover opening 824. In this case, thecover opening 824 of the main hinge cover 82 may be connected with thecontrol unit 14 by the connection cover 101. In addition, the wires maybe guided to the inside of the control unit 14 through the inner part ofthe connection cover 101 and may be connected with the display PCB 142or the main PCB 141.

As described above, as the sub-hinge cover 72, the sub-cover 90, and themain hinge cover 82 are sequentially mounted and the wires are placed,the wires withdrawn from the sub-door 50 and the main door 40 may becompletely shielded.

In particular, even when the storage space is open or closed by therotation of the sub-door 50 and the main door 40, the wires are notexposed to the outside and do not interfere with another element.

Hereinafter, the state that the sub-door and the main door of therefrigerator according to an embodiment of the present disclosure areopen will be described.

FIG. 26 is a perspective view that the sub-door is open. FIG. 27 is anenlarged view of part A of FIG. 26 . FIG. 28 is a view that thesub-cover of FIG. 27 is separated from the refrigerator. FIG. 29 is apartial plan view illustrating that the sub-door is open.

As illustrated in drawings, the upper end of the sub-door 50 ispivotably supported by the sub-hinge 70. The sub-door 50 may be rotatedas illustrated in FIG. 26 by the manipulation of the open device of auser. As the sub-door 50 is rotated, the opening 41 of the main door 40may be exposed. As the sub-door 50 is open, the receiving space of themain door 40, that is, the receiving case 43 may be exposed and the usermay receive foods into the receiving case 43.

In the state that the sub-door 50 is open, the rear surface of thesub-door 50 may be exposed. The sub-cover 90 mounted in the sub-door 50may be rotated together with the sub-door 50 in the state that thesub-cover 90 is mounted in the sub-door 50. The wires 502, 503, 504, and505 withdrawn from the sub-door 50 may be completely shielded by thesub-cover 90 and the sub-hinge cover 72 as illustrated in FIG. 27 .

In detail, since the wire 51 withdrawn through the sub-hinge cover 72moves along the inside of the sub-hinge cover 72, the wire 51 isshielded by the sub-hinge cover 72 and thus is not exposed to theoutside.

In addition, other wires 502, 503, 504, and 505 inside the sub-door 50may be withdraw to the outside of the sub-door 50 through the wireentrance part 545. In this case, the wires are shielded by the sub-cover90 and are introduced into the sub-hinge cover 72 through the sub-shaftcover part 725. Accordingly, the wires are not exposed to the outsideeven in the state that the sub-door 50 is in an open state or is beingopened as illustrated in FIG. 26 .

Meanwhile, the sub-door 50 may be open by a present angle, and the opendegree of the sub-door 50 may be restricted by the stopping part 728.The rotation angel of the sub-door 50 may be 90° or more about the frontsurface of the main door 40 to facilitate the access to the receivingcase 43 and may be 180° or less such that the sub-door 50 is closedafter the foods are received in the receiving case 43.

In detail, in the state that the sub-door 50 is rotated, the sub-hingecover 72 is maintained in a fixing state together with the main door 40.In addition, when the sub-door 50 is rotated at a set angle or more, theside end portion of the sub-door 50 may be inserted into the stoppingpart 728 recessed from the end portion of the sub-hinge cover 72.

In this case, the side end portion of the sub-door 50 may correspond toone side end portion of the upper end of the sub-door 50 in which thehinge mounting part 541 is formed. In addition, the side end portion ofthe sub-door 50 may be adjacent to the end portion of the sub-cover 90and an out-case 51 forming an outer surface of the sub-door 50 maycorrespond to the bending portion.

When the sub-door 50 is rotated about the sub-hinge cover 72, the sideend portion of the sub-door 50 may be inserted into the space recessedin the stopping part 728. In addition, if the sub-door 50 is rotated bya set angle, the side end portion of the sub-door 50 makes contact withthe stopping part 728 as illustrated in FIG. 28 and the sub-door 50 isrestricted such that the sub-door 50 is not rotated any more.

The stopping part 728, which provides the space between the sub-shaftcover part 725 and the main shaft cover part 724 of the sub-hinge cover72, may restrict the side end portion of the sub-door 50 into the spacebetween the sub-shaft cover part 725 and the main shaft cover part 724.

FIG. 30 is a perspective view of the main door that is open. FIG. 31 isan enlarged view of part B of FIG. 30 . FIG. 32 is a view illustratingthat the main hinge cover of FIG. 31 is separated.

As illustrated in drawings, in the state that the sub-door 50 is closed,the user may open the main door 40 while holding the main door 40 withone hand of the user. It is preferred that the main door 40 is open inthe state that the sub-door 50 is closed, the main door 40 is rotated inthe state that the sub-door 50 is open.

As the main door 40 is rotated, the main door 40 is rotated about themain hinge shaft 811. In addition, the internal storage space of thecabinet 10 is open by the rotation of the main door 40 and thus foodsmay be received as illustrated in FIG. 29 . In addition, the rearsurface of the receiving case 43 of forming an additional storage spaceprovided by the main door 40 may be exposed and the user may receivefoods in the storage space provided by the main door 40 even through therear surface of the receiving case 43.

Meanwhile, in the state that the main door 40 is open, the sub-hingecover 72 mounted in the main door 40 is rotated together. In addition,since the main door 40 and the sub-door 50 are rotated together, thesub-cover 90 is rotated together.

In this state, the wires 401, 501, 502, 503, 504, and 505 inside themain door 40 and the sub-door 50 may be introduced into the mainextending part 822 of the main hinge cover 82 through the main shaftcover part 724 of the sub-hinge cover 72. An end portion of the mainextending part 822 may be aligned in a line the main shaft cover part724, and the main shaft cover part 724 may be shielded by the mainextending part 822. The wires passing through the main shaft cover part724 may be shielded by the main hinge cover 82 and may be guided throughthe inside of the main hinge cover 82.

Accordingly, as illustrated in FIG. 30 , in the state that the main door40 is in an open state or is being opened, the wires withdrawn from thesub-door 50 and the main door 40 are shielded by the sub-hinge cover 72and the main hinge cover 82, are not exposed to the outside, and doesnot interfere with another element.

The embodiment of the present disclosure is to provide a refrigeratorcapable of preventing an electric wire, which extends from a door towarda main body, from being exposed to the outside.

The embodiment of the present disclosure is to provide a refrigeratorcapable of preventing an electric wire, which extends from a door towarda main body, from interfering with another element or being damaged.

The embodiment of the present disclosure is to provide a refrigeratorcapable of shielding and guiding an electric wire which extends from amain door to a sub-door.

The embodiment of the present disclosure is to provide a refrigeratorcapable of guiding an electric wire extending from a door restrictingthe thickness of the electric wire toward a main body without beingexposed to the outside or interfering with the opening of the door.

According to an embodiment, a refrigerator includes a cabinet; a controlunit that is provided in the cabinet and controls an operation of therefrigerator; a main door that opens or closes the cabinet and has anopening formed therein; a main hinge that couples the cabinet to themain door and allows the main door to be pivotably mounted; a sub-doorthat is formed on a front surface of the refrigerator and opens orcloses the opening; a sub-hinge that couples the main door to thesub-door and allows the sub-door to be pivotably mounted; a sub hingecover that simultaneously shield a main hinge shaft of the main hingeand a sub-hinge shaft of the sub-hinge; and a wire disposed to extendfrom an inside of the sub-door, to be connected with the control unit,and to sequentially pass through the sub-hinge shaft and the main hingeshaft along an inside of the sub-hinge cover.

The sub-hinge cover may be fixedly mounted on the main door and may beprovided in one surface thereof with an opening to receive the sub-hingein the sub-hinge cover.

The sub-hinge cover may include a main shaft cover part that shields anupper portion of the main hinge shaft and has a hollow structure alignedin a line with the main hinge shaft, and a sub-shaft cover part thatshields an upper portion of the sub-hinge shaft and has a hollowstructure aligned in a line with the sub-hinge shaft.

The refrigerator of claim 3 may further include a cover connection partinterposed between the main shaft cover part and the sub-shaft coverpart to couple the main shaft cover part to the sub-shaft cover part.

The cover connection part may be cut out such that the wire passesthrough the cover connection part, and a wire restriction part may beformed inside the cover connection part to protrude toward the sub-shaftcover part and to allow the wire to restrict a wire provided inside thesub-shaft cover part.

The wire may have a connector for coupling. A diameter of a hollowstructure of the sub-shaft cover part may be less than a width of theconnector, and a diameter of a hollow structure of the main shaft coverpart is greater than a width of the connector. The wire may be insertedinto the hollow structure of the main shaft cover part, may be movedalong the cover connection part, and may be positioned in the hollowstructure of the sub-shaft cover part.

The wire may include a first wire withdrawn out of the inside of thesub-door through the sub-hinge shaft, and a second wire withdrawn out ofthe inside of the main door through the main hinge shaft. The first wireand the second wire may extend toward the control unit through thehollow structure of the main shaft cover part.

A hinge mounting part having the sub-hinge shaft may be formed in thesub-door, and the hinge mounting part may be formed at one side thereofwith a wire entrance part having an opening allowing a third wire insidethe sub-door to be withdrawn out of the hinge mounting part.

A sub-cover may be provided in the hinge mounting part and receives thethird wire extending from the wire entrance part to the sub-shaft coverpart.

The sub-hinge shaft, the sub-shaft cover part, and the sub-cover may bealigned in a line in an up-down direction and communicate with eachother.

The third wire guided by the sub-cover may be introduced into the hingecover through the hollow structure of the sub-shaft cover part and mayextend toward the control unit through the hollow structure of the mainshaft cover part.

The cabinet may include a main hinge cover to shield an upper portion ofthe main shaft cover part, and the main hinge shaft, the main shaftcover part, and the main hinge cover may be aligned in a line andcommunicate with each other.

The cabinet may be provided on a top surface thereof with a connectioncover to receive the wire and to connect the main hinge cover with thecontrol unit.

The sub-door may include a transparent panel assembly to selectivelyvisualize an inside of the opening. The transparent panel assembly mayinclude a display to output an image.

The wire may be a wire for the display to perform signal processing ofthe display, and the wire for the display may pass through the sub-hingeshaft.

The third wire may include remaining wires that are provided inside thesub-door except for the wire for the display and are guided to anoutside through the wire entrance part.

The third wire may be at least one of a touch sensor wire connected witha touch sensor to sense a touch of the transparent panel assembly, aground wire to prevent static electricity when the transparent panelassembly is touched, a heater wire connected with a heater to preventdew from being concentrated on a front surface of the sub-door, and amicrophone wire connected with a microphone for a voice input of a user.

The sub-door may be formed on an upper end thereof with a decorationopening communicating with a space of an upper portion of thetransparent panel assembly. Printed circuit boards may be provided in aninner part of the decoration opening to control the transparent panelassembly. The inner part of the decoration opening may communicate withthe wire entrance part.

A topping part may be recessed inwardly between the main shaft coverpart and the sub-shaft cover part. A side end portion of the sub-doormay be inserted into the stopping part to restrict an opening of thesub-door, when an opening degree of the sub-door is maximized.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a refrigerator mayinclude a cabinet having a storage space, a door that opens or closesthe storage space, a hinge that pivotably couples the cabinet to a doorand is coupled to a hinge mounting part recessed in the door by a hingeshaft, a hinge cover that shields the hinge and receives the hingeshaft, a first wire withdrawn out of an inside of the sub-door throughthe hinge shaft, a wire entrance part that has an opening formed in thehinge mounting part and allows a second wire inside the sub-door to bewithdrawn out of the hinge mounting part, and a sub-cover that guides awire, which extends from the wire entrance part to the sub-shaft coverpart to pass through the wire entrance part, toward the hinge cover.

As described above, according to the embodiment, the refrigerator hasthe following effects.

In the refrigerator according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure, the wires provided inside the sub-door passes through theinside of the hinge cover which shields both the hinge shafts of thesub-door and the main door. Accordingly, when the sub-door or the maindoor is open, the wires are not exposed to the outside.

In addition, the wires sequentially pass through the hinge shafts of thesub-door and the main door toward the cabinet. Even when the sub-door orthe main door is rotated, the wires may be prevented from being changedin a length or moved as wires are pulled or pushed. Accordingly, theinterference of the wires or the damage to the wires may be prevented,so the durability of the wires may be improved.

In addition, the sub-hinge cover includes the main shaft cover part andthe sub-shaft cover part, which shield the hinge shaft of the main doorand the hinge shaft of the sub-door. The cover connection part is formedto move the wires from the main shaft cover part to the sub-shaft coverpart. Accordingly, the wires withdrawn from the sub-door and the maindoor are guided to pass through the respective hinge shafts by using onemember (the sub-hinge cover). Accordingly, the workability and theproductivity may be improved.

In addition, some of the wires connected with a plurality of electronicparts provided inside the sub-door may be withdrawn through the hingeshaft of the sub-door. The remaining portion of the wires may bewithdrawn to the outside through the additional wire entrance partformed in the door. The guide of the wires passing through the sub-doorand the hinge shaft of the sub-door, which are restricted in thickness,is possible.

In particular, only the display wire for transmitting a signal to thedisplay passes through the hinge shaft. Accordingly, the display wire,which is difficult to have the connector structure, may be efficientlyguided to the control unit and the noise may be minimized.

In addition, the wires may be guided to the rotational shaft of thesub-door without being exposed to the outside by the sub-coverconnecting the wire entrance part with the hinge cover.

Any reference in this specification to “one embodiment,” “anembodiment,” “example embodiment,” etc., means that a particularfeature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with theembodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the invention. Theappearances of such phrases in various places in the specification arenot necessarily all referring to the same embodiment. Further, when aparticular feature, structure, or characteristic is described inconnection with any embodiment, it is submitted that it is within thepurview of one skilled in the art to effect such feature, structure, orcharacteristic in connection with other ones of the embodiments.

Although embodiments have been described with reference to a number ofillustrative embodiments thereof, it should be understood that numerousother modifications and embodiments can be devised by those skilled inthe art that will fall within the spirit and scope of the principles ofthis disclosure. More particularly, various variations and modificationsare possible in the component parts and/or arrangements of the subjectcombination arrangement within the scope of the disclosure, the drawingsand the appended claims. In addition to variations and modifications inthe component parts and/or arrangements, alternative uses will also beapparent to those skilled in the art.

What is claimed is:
 1. A refrigerator comprising: a cabinet having astorage space; a controller configured to control an operation of therefrigerator; a main door configured to open and close at least aportion of the storage space and having a door opening, the main doorcomprising: a main hinge mount recessed from an upper surface of themain door, and a main hinge hole disposed at the main hinge mount; asub-door configured to open and close the door opening, the sub-doorcomprising: a sub-hinge mount recessed from a rear surface of thesub-door, and a sub-hinge hole disposed at the sub-hinge mount; a mainhinge configured to support rotation of the main door, the main hingecomprising: a main hinge plate disposed on an upper surface of thecabinet and extending to the main hinge mount, and a main hinge shaftdisposed at the main hinge hole; a sub-hinge configured to supportrotation of the sub-door, the sub-hinge comprising: a sub-hinge platedisposed on the main hinge mount and extending to the sub-hinge mount,and a sub-hinge shaft disposed at the sub-hinge hole; a first wire thatextends from an inside of the main door and passes through the mainhinge shaft, and the first wire is connected to the controller by afirst connector; and a second wire that extends from an inside of thesub-door and passes through the sub-hinge shaft, and the second wire isconnected to the controller by a second connector.
 2. The refrigeratorof claim 1, further comprising a main hinge cover disposed on the uppersurface of the cabinet, wherein the main hinge cover is configured toguide the first wire.
 3. The refrigerator of claim 2, wherein the mainhinge cover is vertically arranged with the main hinge shaft to shieldat least a portion of the main hinge shaft.
 4. The refrigerator of claim2, further comprising a sub-hinge cover disposed on the main hingemount, wherein the sub-hinge cover is configured to guide the secondwire.
 5. The refrigerator of claim 4, wherein the sub-hinge cover isvertically arranged with the sub-hinge shaft to shield at least aportion of the sub-hinge shaft.
 6. The refrigerator of claim 4, whereinthe sub-hinge cover comprises a stopping part configured to restrict anopening degree of the sub-door when the main door closes the at least aportion of the storage space and the sub-door opens the door opening. 7.The refrigerator of claim 6, wherein the stopping part is recessed froma side surface of the sub-hinge cover, and wherein a side surface of thesub-door is inserted into the stopping part when the sub-door is openedto a predetermined opening degree of the sub-door.
 8. The refrigeratorof claim 1, wherein the storage space is positioned on an upper portionof the cabinet, wherein the cabinet includes an additional storage spacepositioned on a lower portion of the cabinet, and wherein therefrigerator comprises an additional door configured to open and close aportion of the additional storage space.
 9. The refrigerator of claim 1,wherein the storage space includes a first region and a second region,and wherein the main door is configured to open and close the firstregion of the storage space.
 10. The refrigerator of claim 1, whereinthe sub-door comprises: a transparent panel assembly that includes afront panel configured to provide a front surface of the sub-door and arear panel configured to provide the rear surface of the sub-door; anouter plate configured to provide both side surfaces of the sub-door,the outer plate having a plate opening in which the transparent panelassembly is coupled; a door liner having a liner opening to which therear panel is coupled; an upper cap decoration coupled to an upperportion of the outer plate; a lower cap decoration coupled to a lowerportion of the outer plate; and an insulation member provided in a firstspace that is defined by the outer plate, the door liner, the upper capdecoration, the lower cap decoration and the transparent panel assembly.11. The refrigerator of claim 10, wherein the controller is mounted onthe upper surface of the cabinet and is configured to control electricalcomponents.
 12. The refrigerator of claim 11, further comprising alighting member provided at sides of the liner opening.
 13. Therefrigerator of claim 12, wherein the transparent panel assembly furtherincludes: a spacer provided between the front panel and the rear panelto form a second space; a display in the second space; a light guideplate disposed between the display and the rear panel; and a displaylight configured to irradiate light to the light guide plate.
 14. Therefrigerator of claim 13, wherein the transparent panel assembly isconfigured to be in each one of a plurality of mode states, theplurality of mode states comprising: a transparent mode state in whichthe lighting member is turned on to allow the storage space to bevisible through the transparent panel assembly while the display lightis turned off and the display does not output screen information, anopaque mode state in which the lighting member is turned off to make thestorage space to be invisible through the transparent panel assemblywhile the display light is turned off and the display does not outputscreen information, and a screen output mode state in which the lightingmember is turned off and the display light is turned on, the displaybeing configured to output screen information through the transparentpanel assembly.
 15. The refrigerator of claim 10, wherein the upper capdecoration comprises a decoration opening to receive a PCB mount, andwherein a circuit board is mounted on the PCB mount and is disposedabove the transparent panel assembly.
 16. The refrigerator of claim 15,comprising a third wire connected to the circuit board, wherein thethird wire passes through the sub-hinge mount and is connected to thecontroller.
 17. The refrigerator of claim 1, wherein the second wireincludes fine wires and a protector to surround the fine wires, andwherein the fine wires and the protector pass through the sub-hingeshaft.
 18. The refrigerator of claim 1, wherein each of the main hingeshaft and the sub-hinge shaft has a cylindrical shape to allow the firstwire and the second wire to pass through the main hinge shaft and thesub-hinge shaft.
 19. The refrigerator of claim 1, wherein the main hingemount is configured to communicate with the sub-hinge mount when thesub-door closes the door opening, and wherein the main hinge mountincludes an inclined surface that extends from a rear surface of themain door to a front surface of the main door.
 20. The refrigerator ofclaim 10, wherein the sub-door comprises an opening device, the openingdevice comprising: a manipulation member disposed below the transparentpanel assembly of the sub-door; a rod to extend from the manipulationmember; and a locking member to protrude from the rear surface of thesub-door and is movable by the rod.